


The Birthday Party

by SmoothieM



Category: Skulduggery Pleasant - Derek Landy
Genre: After Midnight, All I can write is fluff so enjoy, Birthday Party, F/M, Valduggery - Freeform, after sp11, no its not weird that he is a skeleton
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-06
Updated: 2018-12-06
Packaged: 2019-09-13 03:52:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,826
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16885122
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SmoothieM/pseuds/SmoothieM
Summary: Some valduggery fluff -- Skulduggery helps Valkyrie buying a birthday present for Alice and they attend the party. Set after SP11, yet no major spoilers about the plot in the book.





	The Birthday Party

“Alice just invited us to her birthday party”, Valkyrie said after finishing the phone call with her still six-year-old sister. She was sitting in the passenger seat of the black Bentley that she loved so dearly, next to her partner in crime and best friend whom she loved dearly as well.  
“Us? She invited me too?” Skulduggery asked, tilting his head in wonderment, and raising an eyebrow of his Mediterranean looking façade. They were out on a case, distracting themselves from the barely progressing search for Abyssinia and her son Caisson. Gregory Mischief, a known collector and suspect to be responsible for the theft of the four extremely rare books on the functionality of magic which were secured safely in the African and Australian sanctuary, was spotted thrice in Dublin within the past days. China herself asked them to investigate in the matter and Valkyrie knew that China’s request was not only fuelled by the fear to be the next target but rather rooted in her own interest in the stolen things.  
“Very much so. She asked me to come and added immediately bring Skulduggery with you. She said something about you being fun”  
Skulduggery nodded in agreement. “I am fun. She really does have an outstanding taste in people for someone that young. It took you six years longer to appreciate my genius”  
“I didn’t even know you when I was six!”  
“You were obsessed with me as a baby though. Gordon wouldn’t admit it, but he was jealous how you followed me around like a puppy. Now that I think about it, nothing much has changed”  
Valkyrie smacked his arm and he chuckled. “She simply doesn’t know you well enough to realise that your ego is bigger than she is. To her, you are still some kind of selfless hero who helped prevent a psychopath to kill her. And me.”  
“Just admit that I am a loveable person already”  
She rolled her eyes so hard, it was almost audible. “Right. Anyway, I told her we’d come, so we better finish this quickly.”  
“When’s her birthday again?”  
“In three days”  
“Did you buy her a gift?”  
“I… I am going to. Definitely. It is what good big sisters do, don’t they? I just…” She sighed. “I am absolutely clueless what to get. I haven’t been part of her life for five years, what do I know what she likes? What do I know of six years olds?”  
“You really aren’t good with presents.”  
“Are you planning to help me or are you just going to mock me?”  
“Both, probably. But not now -- looks like we found our suspect.”  
Valkyrie looked up to see a man in a long, grey coat hurrying out of a taxi towards the library in Roarhaven. He had his hat pulled deeply in his face as though he didn’t want to be recognised, but his tall, lanky figure gave his identity away nonetheless. Gregory Mischief. They had a decent plan; create a forgery from a one-of-a-kind book from the remains of China’s collection and spread the word that it was for sale on the black market, then set up a meeting in a public place and hope Temper would distract him long enough for the Dynamic Duo to capture him. Simple. Efficient. The best preconditions for an embarrassing failure.  
They got out of the car and quickly walked into the library while Skulduggery’s façade melted away. Just like any other building in Roarhaven City, it was a huge, palatial building with an exquisite collection; only the best for a city ruled by China Sorrows. It was a short way to the isolated private room meant for reading in peace which they had rented for the exact purpose of meeting Mischief and when they turned up, they found Temper in a disguise facing the suspect.  
“It is in a decent condition” Temper said calmly, “I stole it myself from Supreme Mage Sorrows private chambers.”  
“And how exactly did you manage to overcome the sigils? The security? Surely there must have been cleavers around!”  
Valkyrie frowned at the sound of his voice. She expected something dark and dangerous, instead his voice was almost too high to be taken seriously and average at best, if not even boring, with a thick midwestern accent. She hated when the bad guys disappointed.  
“No cleavers. A few sigils. I have to admit, it took me quite some time to figure out how to disable them, but the Supreme Mage is too busy being important to call around her place lately.”  
“Very well. I wanna see it. Show it to me”  
“And the money?”  
“What, you think I am trying to trick you?” With a grin he took a pouch out and opened it, the diamonds sparkling in midday sun.  
She watched how Temper nodded satisfied and pulled the forgery out of the back and handed it over while simultaneously taking the pouch. That was the sign. Skulduggery signalled her to hold on for a second while he slowly stepped into the room, careful to not make a single noise. Mischief turned the book in his hands, opened it and turned some arbitrary pages. Then he smiled. Once again Valkyrie looked at Skulduggery, who pointed to her that it was her turn in three…two…one… The electricity spanked between her finger tips as Valkyrie stepped out of the shadow into the room, pulling out the shackles which would bind his magic. Mischief turned around immediately and froze as he saw her.  
“Mr Mischief. I hereby arrest you for the stealing of four magic relicts and the attempt to buy a fifth one. You don’t really have any rights, so just be a good boy and put these shackles on”  
She expected resistance, fighting, maybe some tears. Instead she got this tall, grownup man looking at her with obvious admiration. He dropped down to his knees, tilted his head and screamed full of delight: “Darquesse! It is you! You came to reward me for all the obstacles I’ve undergone to get you back!”  
“I am not Darquesse, I am arresting you”  
“You are a god! I’ve been waiting for your return! I am studying everything about magic just to get you back! I love you, Darquesse! You gave my life purpose again, you -“ he stopped at once, falling over and landing right before her feet. Behind him stood Skulduggery with his revolver in his hand.  
“That” he said, “was undignified. You may just be the only person who can drive people this insane”  
“Admire me or kill me, is that how it goes now?” she mumbled and put the shackles around the criminal forearms.  
“It is not exactly a new development, Valkyrie. This it how it’s been going for years. You just have this effect”  
“Yay me”  
Temper came closer and lifted Mischief over his shoulder. “Well I for once am happy to see that everything worked out just fine. And I take his little love talk as confession for the crimes and bring him to the High Sanctuary. Supreme Mage Sorrows will be more than pleased to find him”  
“and the stolen relicts of which she will probably take care herself” Skulduggery added.  
“That too. I would invite you to come along…”  
“That’s quite alright” Valkyrie interrupted, “we still have important things to do”  
“We do?”  
“Yes. Like buying a present for my baby sister.”  
Temper laughed. “How old is she now? Six? She is not a baby anymore!”  
“Well, she is to me. So, if you don’t need us anymore…”  
“No, I’m good. You two go enjoy yourselves.”  
“Excellent.” She turned on her heel and quickly left the room.  
“She still hasn’t coped with the entire Darquesse-thing, has she?” asked Temper quietly.  
“Valkyrie is a good person, it is not easy for her to accept that a part of her killed thousand of people, even if it wasn’t her. But she is getting better, slowly.”  
“Make sure to take good care of her. She deserves to be happy”  
“Exactly my thinking” Skulduggery tapped his collarbone to activate his façade once again and quickly followed Valkyrie out. What an odd couple the two made, Temper thought to himself. And yet, he had to admit, it was oddly charming too.

 

Skulduggery found Valkyrie in the Bentley, her face turned away from him as he got in.  
“Are you okay? I know you hate being mistaken for her and if you want to talk about it…” he said gently, putting his gloved hand on her shoulder.  
“Well, it sure helped this time, didn’t it?” Her voice was quiet, almost weak.  
“That doesn’t mean you have to be okay with it.”  
“Do you think there are more people out there like him?” She turned her head to look at him, her dark eyes watery. He hated seeing her hurt. “People who admire her, people who want to bring her back?”  
“I don’t know. There might be. There are people who worship he faceless ones as well despite them being evil and insane. I don’t see why it wouldn’t happen with Darquesse as well… She was god-like after all.”  
“But she is gone, right? There is no way she survived the fight with the faceless ones?”  
He hesitated for a moment. “It is most likely, yes. But we can’t know for sure and we can’t open a portal to double check. We just must live with the uncertainty. She’s like Schroedinger’s cat”  
“Darquesse is a cat?”  
“I didn’t say she is a cat, I said she is like a cat.”  
“And who is this Schroedinger guy?”  
“He was a German scientist and who put a cat in a box together with a vial of poison which could go off at any time. And as long as the box was closed, the cat could be considered both death and alive at the same time. Just like we can consider Darquesse dead and alive at the same time right now”  
“But why would he poison a cat? They are adorable!”  
“That’s not really the point-“  
“He could have just taken a glass box too. Then he could tell if the cat was alive or dead.”  
“Valkyrie -“  
“Besides, what did he want to prove with killing a cat anyway? That is just cruel”  
“You eat dead animals all the time.”  
She opened her mouth to reply, but couldn’t think of anything to say, so he just closed it again and looked out of the window.  
“What, are you sulking now?”  
“No. I’m just mourning the poor cat and all the other innocent animals.”  
He sighed. “So shall we go get Alice the best birthday gift ever now or what?” She started to smile and nodded.  
“That’s what I wanted to see”  
They drove off, out of Roarhaven, back to Dublin. Just a fifteen minutes’ drive away from Skulduggery’s house, there was a fairly big shopping mall which Skulduggery declared as just the perfect place for them to find something.  
Shortly afterwards, they found themselves in the first toy store looking at stuff. Almost half an hour passed resultless. Catching the bad guys, battling gods, saving the world -- all of this easier than finding a good gift for her sister. Things have changed a lot since she was young, she found.  
“What did you want when you were her age?” Skulduggery asked.  
“A pony. I think all little girls want ponies. Don’t you think she would love a pony?”  
“Does she have experiences with ponies?”  
“I guess not. It may just be a little too much anyhow… Oh, then what about a puppy! She loves Xena! Don’t you think she would love one?”  
“She certainly would. Your parents not so much. They didn’t allow you a dog either.”  
“Fair point.” She sighed, “Now, Mr Know-it-all, what do you reckon we should get her?”  
“So it’s we now and not you? You are the big sister”  
“It’s always been us, Skulduggery. We are a team, remember?”  
“I didn’t know being partners included shopping toys for Alice”  
“It’s a broad term after all.”  
A salesgirl giggled right next to them, catching their intention. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to interfere! I couldn’t help but overhear your conversation. You’re an adorable couple, really!”  
Valkyrie’s eyes widened, and she felt herself blush, not knowing how to react. Should she correct her? Would Skulduggery? Was it weird if she did or even weirder if she didn’t? Her brain was still progressing her thoughts as Skulduggery picked up the conversation.  
“Quite alright. We are looking for a suitable present for a little girl as you heard, she’ll turn seven soon.”  
“What a wonderful age! They grow up so quickly, don’t they? I’m sure we will find something suitable for your girlfriend’s sister!”  
Valkyrie saw a smile pop up on his face. Was he seriously enjoying this, the thought of them being together? Or was he just laughing at the ridiculousness of such a thought?  
“What does she like?” the woman continued.  
“Um, she likes music and dancing and she has this doll she cares about a lot… and dogs”, Valkyrie quickly said, ignoring the thoughts of her assumed relationship with Skulduggery and the fuzzy feeling that came with them.  
“And your parents don’t want her to get a dog, I take it?”  
“They don’t know what’s good” She grinned.  
“I’m certain we find something a little easier than a dog!”  
She led them through aisles of toys, presenting them everything that she claimed little girls would just love, from various board games and dolls to princess costumes, LEGO construction sets for kids and toy weapons of which Skulduggery was especially found, but Valkyrie was determined to keep Alice away from violence to the best of her abilities. Never would a mad man like Cadaverous Gant take her again. And when they were about to give up, a silver lining appeared right in the Disney Section.  
“So that is it then?” Skulduggery asked.  
“You don’t think it’s good?”  
“Actually, I think it’s the closest to perfect we may get, leaving a dog beside.”  
“Then it’s settled, we take it”  
The sales girl clapped her hands in excitement. “Wonderful! I told you we would just find the perfect thing! She surely will enjoy herself”  
Valkyrie gave her a smile, then went to pay. Once they were back in the car, she looked at Skulduggery in relief. “Thank you for doing this with me”  
“No problem at all, really. You know, Alice may just be my favourite Edgley” he teased.  
“Seriously?!”  
“You must admit she is adorable.”  
“Of course she is! she is my sister after all! Adorableness runs in the family”  
“Seems like the gene is stronger in her than … others”  
“Oh shut up, I am adorable and I know you love me, Skulduggery”  
“Sure I do”  
“You said so yourself!”  
“Must have been one of those sensitive days of mine”  
“Skulduggery!”  
“Alice is still up there though” After a moment of silence, his façade began to grin and a feeling of relief spread from Valkyrie’s chest into the rest of her body.  
“You’re joking, aren’t you?”  
“I’m not. I should just add that while you’re still technically an Edgley, in this world, in our world, your name is Valkyrie Cain after all, isn’t it?”  
“You’re such a moron”  
“I love you, too”  
She smiled her cutest smile. He didn’t say this a lot, at least not directly, but whenever he did, the words filled her with warmth and a feeling of comfortability, as if she was home at last. And yet she couldn’t get Kes’s voice out of her head since the day Alice was taken away. You’re addicted to him. The more she thought about it, the more truth she could find in the statement. She could let go this life again like she did after Devastation day -- but she could never leave Skulduggery behind, not after everything they have been through. If it wasn’t for him, she probably would have retired already, but this way there was no other place she felt like she belonged but his side. As his partner.  
How awfully broad this term was.  
“I think we earned ourselves a night off, don’t you?” she asked.  
“Do you have something planned?”  
“It’s rather an idea than a plan. It involves you and me, your place, pizza, and a movie night snuggled up on the couch”  
He nodded. “The perfect way to spend a night off.” He started the engine and they drove to his house between the cemeteries. She used to spend way more time there before she moved to Gordon’s, back when her reflection took over her life in Haggard and staying with Skulduggery was the most convenient. Over the time, he even had a bathroom installed for her as well as a kitchen with food for her and her own bed after he killed a sofa once thinking it was a bed sofa. Now with Xena being around, she naturally tended to be more at her own house, yet ever since Gant kidnapped Alice there, she yearned for a place that was less known in the magic community and his home address was a secret well kept. They were there in no time and it felt like returning home. She may as well moved in with him here, if it wasn’t for Xena.  
“I missed this place” she said smilingly once she entered and stripped her boots off.  
“You know you are welcome at any time”  
“But what’s the point if you’re not here? Okay, so I’ll order the pizza you, you pick the movie!”  
She took out her phone and ordered the pizza with extra cheese and vegetables. She didn’t ger herself to eat meat after her conversation about the cat.  
Twenty minutes later, she sat on the couch, munching on the pizza and watching Hitchcock’s ‘to catch a thief’ with Grace Kelly as the leading lady. Skulduggery has had a crush on her since he first saw her movie in the fifties and wasn’t too ashamed to admit it. Valkyrie didn’t mind; in fact, she thought it was hilarious and enjoyed the movies as much as he did.  
The time went by and after the first movie, they watched a second and a third. It didn’t take long until Valkyrie was all cuddled up in a blanket, laying on Skulduggery’s bony chest. She didn’t mind him being a skeleton at all, he was still a great pillow and he didn’t mind being a pillow either, he rather enjoyed having someone this close to him. He wasn’t exactly a cuddly person and although he was dead, he couldn’t deny how much he fancied the warmth of his partner when she hugged him tight. After a few hours, he found her asleep in his arms and had he lips, he would have smiled at her as he gently stroked some hair slices out of her face. She was just too beautiful.

 

Three days later, the Bentley pulled up in front of the Edgley’s house in Haggard.  
“Are you sure I look alright?” Valkyrie asked for the fifth time during fifteen-minute ride from her house to her parent’s, causing Skulduggery to sigh slightly annoyed.  
“Valkyrie, since when do you worry about it? You’re always beautiful”  
“I don’t want them to think that I am just lazily laying around and wasting Gordon’s money”  
“Your money”  
“Whatever…”  
“There is no way anyone will think badly of you. Unless they are intimidated by muscles. This way they very well may be intimidated by you because you look stronger than ever”  
“Exactly, what if they think --”  
“Then let them think. Is this about something else? Or someone else?”  
She hesitated for a second before she said quietly “if they know what I did, they would all hate me. And they would be right to do so”  
Skulduggery gently laid his arms around her shoulder and puller her into a hug. “Don’t let bad thoughts ruin your day. You did what you had to do. Alice is alive, that’s all that matters for now. She’s alive and she loves you, and me on that notion, so we should go in there and make her day a bit better, shall we?”  
She smiled a sad smile against his chest. “Am I a good person, Skulduggery? After everything that happened in the past 13 years, would you say I am a good one?”  
“If we learned anything in the past years then it is that good and bad are twisted. We all have good and bad in ourselves, it’s our choice which side wins. You, my dearest Valkyrie, are as good of a person than anyone else. You are a better person than I am. You care deeply for your family and friends, even as Darquesse you did. You would have never harmed your sister if the sceptre wasn’t bonded to her and if you hadn’t had the sceptre, Darquesse would have killed your family. You fought your bad side way more effectively than I ever did. And this makes you in my eyes to one of the most precious people I ever had the pleasure to meet.”  
A tear gently rolled down her cheek as she whispered, “Thank you”. She leaned forwards and gently kissed his cheek bone before she stroked over his collarbone to have a façade cover his skull. Once it was done, she said more cheeringly: “Let’s go celebrate a birthday now!” and quickly got out of the Bentley.  
“That’s my girl” Skulduggery whispered before doing the same. Armed with Alice’s gift all wrapped up, they walked up to the front door and were greeted by Melissa Edgley before they could ring the bell.  
“Stephanie! Skulduggery! So nice to have you here”  
She pulled Stephanie into a hug and whispered “I need moral support”, causing Valkyrie to laugh. She went to hug her father and saw from the corner of her eye that her mother greeted Skulduggery with a hug as well. Although they weren’t quite happy with him upon their first meeting, they’ve grown more and more fond of him every time he met them. She liked that.  
“STEEEPHANIE!!!” Alice frolicked, her eyes full of excitement and happiness, before she jumped into her arms. She has gotten bigger since the last time she had seen her, and it’s only been a few weeks.  
You don’t deserve her admiring you so much, said the little voice in her head, but she muted her instantly. Today was about Alice, not her own self-destructing thoughts.  
“Happy Birthday, little one” she said a happy as she could and kissed her cheek. Alice giggled and hugged her neck, discovering Skulduggery who stepped right next to Valkyrie.  
“You came!”  
“Of course I did. I would have not wanted to miss it. Happy Birthday, Alice!”  
Alice loosened the grip around Valkyrie and hugged him instead. Once she was on the ground again, Valkyrie handed her the present. Her eyes grew wide as she unwrapped it excitingly.  
“What did you get her?” Desmond asked, but before Valkyrie could answer Alice already proclaimed the news.  
“A Disney karaoke machine?? You got me a Karaoke machine?”  
“Happy Birthday”, Valkyrie said plainly once more and Alice clapped and jumped. “I can’t believe it! This is too cool! Thank you!!”  
Melissa looked at her daughter aghast. “A karaoke machine? Really?”  
“Is it bad? We thought that may just be perfect for her”  
“It was that or a dog”, Skulduggery said explanatory and Melissa shook her head.  
“It is indeed perfect, even more if you don’t live here to experience the effects I guess. But we’ll survive it, I’m sure Alice loves it. Anyway, can I offer you a tea?”  
“Yes please” Valkyrie said smilingly and stepped into the living room. Beryl and Fergus were there without the twins. She found that was a good thing, she didn’t need Carol’s reflection around. There were two friends of Alice, Molly and Alex from her school, who were equally excited about the karaoke and their parents. The kids already begged Desmond to set the karaoke up. Later, he assured them. Then there was a friend of her parents, Derek, who was Alice’s godfather. She always liked Derek, he was just as sarcastic as Gordon; he surely would get along just fine with Skulduggery, who stepped with a bright smile into the room. They were immediately the centre of attention.  
“Stephanie”, Beryl began, “I haven’t seen you in for ever! Look at you, you look so … so… strong! Do you do anything else but working out?”  
“I eat lots of Pizza too”, she said, shrugging. “Beryl, Fergus, I am sure you remember Skulduggery Pleasant?”  
“Of course. Mr. Pleasant, what a … pleasure to see you again. Without your glasses”  
“Call me Skulduggery. The pleasure is all mine”  
He politely shook her hand and Valkyrie had to supress a grin, knowing that he disliked her aunt as much as she did.  
“And, did these silly words of wisdom from Gordon ever came in handy?” She didn’t even try to hide the condescending smirk, but Skulduggery’s façade didn’t even change a bit.  
“Very much so, shortly afterwards even. Are you enjoying your boat?” She took a deep breath in, getting increasingly mad, but Fergus interrupted her before she could start: “Don’t mind me asking, but what exactly are you doing here?”  
“Not at all. Alice invited me”  
At the sound of her name, she giggled. “Yep! Skulduggery is our friend! Right?”  
“Right, Alice”, the velvet voice agreed.  
“Our?” Beryl asked but before Valkyrie could explain, she was pulled into a hug by two massive arms.  
“Steph! I swear you’re getting more and more beautiful every time I see you!”  
“Hi, Derek”  
“I heard you were gone for five years in the USA! What an adventure that must been!”  
“It was okay, but after a while I reckoned its time to go home at last”, she said looking at Skulduggery smilingly. “Derek, may I introduce to you my friend and partner, Skulduggery”  
“Partner?” he asked with a knowing grin. Valkyrie didn’t care to correct his thought. “I see. A friend of Steph is a friend of mine! My name is Derek, I’m the godfather of our birthday child after I wasn’t good enough for the first born”  
“Pleasure to meet you, Derek”  
She went on introducing herself to the parents of Alice’s friends before sitting down next to Skulduggery at the table as her mother brought her the promised tea.  
“So, Stephanie - Melissa said you never ended up going to college after all! Of course you don’t need to work to survive, but just wasting your life doing nothing doesn’t seem to be the thing Gordon would have imagined you to do. You had so much potential!”  
“It’s true I didn’t go to college. School isn’t my thing after all. But I am not unemployed -- I am a detective. As a matter of fact, Skulduggery and I are Arbiter for an international organisation we are not allowed to name.”  
“They care a lot about privacy” Skulduggery nodded.  
“Arbiter? But don’t you need a degree or some kind of qualification for that?” Beryl asked visible shocked by the answer.  
“Val- I mean Stephanie is more than qualified for the job after all the time working for the Irish group of mentioned organisation.” He explained calmly. How Valkyrie envied him for his chills sometimes.  
Derek laughed. “Well, a normal job certainly wouldn’t do for our little oddball!”  
Luckily, the conversation shifted fast. Beryl gave Melissa and Desmond a talk of the importance of university despite their efforts to assure them that their daughter was old enough to make her own decisions, Fergus eyed the Dynamic Duo suspiciously all the time whereas Derek and Skulduggery were engaged in a talk about Gordon and his books - they got along as well as imagined - and she talked to the parents of Molly about her time in Colorado and dogs while the little ones were playing in the next room. They chatted along and nobody seemed to notice that Skulduggery would neither eat nor drink. After a while, Desmond finally set up the Karaoke Machine and everyone had to come over to watch them sing a long to tunes from famous Disney movies, from Frozen over High School Musical to Lion King. It wasn’t nearly as bad as she suspected it to be.  
After an enthusiastic version of Hakuna Matata as sung by Desmond and Derek, much to the enjoyment of Alice, Temper called Skulduggery and he and Valkyrie quickly stepped out.  
“I thought I’d let you know that Gregory Mischief indeed was our man. Apparently, he is part of a group of Daquesse-worshippers who tried to understand well enough to reach her level of power, yet without success so far.”  
“That is good news. Well, that they didn’t succeeded, not that there are more of them.” Skulduggery said.  
“Indeed. China sends her regards by the way and wants an update on the Abyssinia-situation in the next time.”  
“Do we have an appointment or do we kick down doors?”  
“She said you would find a way to contact her, so the latter it is.”  
“Thanks for the update, Temper” Valkyrie said.  
“Sure thing. Enjoy the party”  
They ended the call and Skulduggery put his phone away.  
“Are you doing okay so far?” he asked supportively.  
“Yes, I mean its not so bad, is it? Even Beryl and Fergus seemed to relax a bit.”  
“They haven’t criticised your life choices in an hour. That is quite impressive I might say”  
“Alice seems to enjoy herself, but she always does… Are you sure we can fix her?”  
“Let’s see. Who stopped Serpine?”  
“Um, us”  
“Who stopped Vengeous and the Grotesquery?”  
“Us, too”  
“Who killed two faceless ones?”  
“That was me” she said grinning.  
“Right. And it was also you who rescued me from their world, isn’t that so? And who saved the thousand of people at the game from Scarab’s little vengeance group?”  
“Hm, Fletcher probably, I mean he brought Guild away and…”  
“So that was us too then. Who stopped the Passage of the necromancers? Who stopped Aggredion and his power boosted teenager while shanting between the dimensions? And who, ultimately stopped Darquesse? Who put hundreds of bad guys into jail?”  
“I believe you want me to say us”  
“Exactly! Now, tell me again, why would a pair like the two of us after so many times of saving the world fail at such a little thing like giving your sister a soul?”  
“I don’t know, maybe because we are way better at hitting people then science?”  
“But luckily we both know a creature who happened to know all about the soul”  
“We’ve been trying to find Nye for weeks, we don’t even know if it is still alive!”  
“Don’t doubt our genius. We’ll fix her like we are fixing ourselves.”  
She smiled. “Thank you for doing all of this. For being here and taking care of her… of me…”  
“I told you I would never leave you, Valkyrie. You’re are my partner and I wouldn’t want to have it any other way, as long as you want it too”  
She hugged him tightly. He was always there when she needed him the most, no matter what else was going on and she loved every second of his bony hug.  
“I’m not leaving again, I promise. I know now that this is where I belong”  
“You mean Haggard?”  
“I mean you”  
He smiled, hugging her a bit more tightly. This was wrong, he should feel how he was feeling; she was four hundred years younger than he was, not to mention the minor obstacle of him being a skeleton. But he couldn’t help it, despite knowing that he couldn’t possibly give her what she needed, he still knew his not existing heart was all hers. They were soul mates and he would rather die a second time before giving up on her.

 

“They make quite a cute pair, don’t they?” Derek said whispering to Melissa.  
“Who? Beryl and Fergus?”  
“What?? No! I’m talking about our Steph and Skulduggery!”  
“Oh Derek, they aren’t partners like that! They just work together”  
“Melissa, I’ve been working my job for twenty years and I never had a colleague look at me like Stephanie looks at him.”  
“They just happen to be really good friends too. They spend a lot of time with each other and he was her mentor, of course she admires him”  
“I’m not talking about mere admiration. Just look at them now” He pointed at the room where they were going to after he received some phone call about work; they couldn’t hear what they were saying yet saw them through the glass of the door. He was saying something, and she started to smile and after a few seconds, she went in to hug him. Not a casual friend hug, it seemed. They were tight, eyes closed, still talking so it seemed. Melissa shook her head.  
“He is way too old for her, anyway. We met him a few times recently, he never mentioned anything or did anything that lead us to think they are more than just friends”  
“He isn’t that old, Melissa. Look at him, he is what, 30? Maybe 35? And Stephanie is already 25! Crazier things have happened. Besides, he seems to be a good person. A fun guy. She could do a lot worse”  
Melissa didn’t answer, instead she was sorting through her memories. What did he say again upon their first meeting? He would gladly lay down his life for her? Whenever she saw Stephanie, he was either around or she talked a lot about him. It wasn’t wrong to assume that he was the centre of her life. The affection between them couldn’t be denied, but after all she knew something Derek didn’t -- that it was ten years that parted them, but a few hundred and that underneath the façade, Skulduggery was living skeleton. No, no it wasn’t possible. Certainly not.  
She looked up as they came back into the room, watching every movement of them; the way they behaved with each or merely stood next to each other, everything demonstrated familiarity with every movement the other person usually does. The entire evening, she couldn’t think of anything else, she was too busy reanalysing every moment she has seen them together, re-evaluating her opinion. She wasn’t sure of anything anymore.  
The day was running out, the girls were getting tired and soon Molly and Alex left with their parents. Alice, albeit tired, insisted to stay up and sat down with Skulduggery and Valkyrie, demanding to hear stories of their adventures. Making sure that Beryl and Fergus were out of hearing range, they told them about some of their greatest adventures in a kid friendly version, without the punching and cursing, but with a focus on team work and friendship and the fun they had. Again, Melissa did her best to analyse their body languages and decided finally Derek was right -- her daughter looked at the skeleton with such a loving affection, she couldn’t deny that it was a possible that she didn’t know all about their relationship.  
“Melissa? Are you even listening?” Beryl asked annoyed.  
“I’m sorry, I was in thought”  
“I was saying how do you tolerate your daughter working with him? He was one of Gordon friends, one of those freaks! You said so yourself!”  
“I used to think that, but Stephanie likes him and she likes the job. He… he isn’t exactly normal, but he does everything to keep her save and genuinely cares for her, which is more than enough for me to honestly say that he is, in fact, a good person.”  
Fergus chuckled despicable at the word “person”, leaving Derek and Beryl confused. The latter however just changed the subject as quickly as possible to avoid further embarrassment, before finally giving her farewell a few minutes later. It was shortly after they left when Alice had enough of listening and felt energised enough to play music and started dancing. Then suddenly she seemed to remember last time her sister and friend where around and ran to her parents and Derek with glowing eyes.  
“Mom! Dad! Stephanie dances Salsa now!!”  
“What?” Desmond asked, a bit confused. “Steph, since when do you care about dancing?”  
“I took a class in Colorado, it is nothing special” she explained, shrugging it off as no big deal.  
“Well, I for my part would love to see you dance! Don’t you, Melissa? Derek?”  
They nodded in agreement and Alice clapped excited: “Yes! Let’s dance!”  
She ran up to the stereo and turned it up ab bit more, then started to move to the music. Skulduggery looked at Valkyrie, softly smiling and holding his gloved hand out.  
“Well, Ms Cain, if you will do me the honour to demonstrate your ability at such a fortunate time…” She grinned, took his hand and was immediately spun out and pulled back in. They danced a close Salsa and shortly after they started, she forgot about her family standing right beside. She forgot about Skulduggery using her taken name rather than her given name. All she cared about was the movement and how she just enjoyed being here with him, close in his arms. Suddenly she looked forward to the next requiem ball in two years; despite the views of the mages who associated her with Darquesse, despite what kind of hate she would perceive, she at least knew that she could sweep the dance floor with Skulduggery. Maybe Dexter and Saracen would come too, she hasn’t seen them since Devastation Day. After Ravel’s betrayal and Ghastly’s and Anton’s death, they were the only dead men left after all.  
Skulduggery spun her out again before pulling her in closely, the hand on her lower back. She figured he looked way more graciously than she did, but she didn’t care. All that mattered was his body against hers. And then, the song was over way too fast and they parted. The dark eyes of the façade were looking into hers and before she could do anything stupid, she looked away smilingly, blushing a bit. The others were applauding her.  
“Wow! I never thought you could move that… elegant! Don’t get me wrong, Steph, I love you, but you aren’t exactly the most gracious person.”  
“I know, Dad. Thanks”  
Derek got up, smiling too. “I have to admit, I’m impressed. And as much as I loved to stay, the little princess over there looks like she would fall asleep any minute now, so I probably better leave.” He hugged everyone goodbye and when it was Valkyrie’s turn, he whispered: “You chose a good one there, sweetie” in her ear. When shaking Skulduggery’s hand, he said loudly “Take care of her. She always had the tendency of walking right into trouble”  
“You don’t know how right you are”, Skulduggery replied grinning before Derek was gone. The moment the door was close, he touched his collarbone and let the façade flow from his face. Valkyrie nodded approvingly, saying “much better”. She saw her mum looking at Alice, shocked that she didn’t seem to mind staring at a living Skeleton.  
“No worries, mum, she knows. She’s been hearing you talking about magic every time, apparently” Valkyrie said calmly, sawing her mother blush.  
“I-it’s not like we talk all the time about it, really! It’s just… Honey, I really am worried about you. About what you do. Just last time, I mean you look like you were thrown under a bus! And Alice--”  
“Alice was fine and nothing will change that. What we do may not always be the safest, but we’ve been doing it for a while already and here I am, still alive.”  
“What happened then?”  
“There was a bad man and he… he tried to kill me because he blamed me for the death of his partner a few year ago. He too, tried to kill me, but he wasn’t smart about it and he died trying. And this other guy, we took care of him. He is in a small cell with no way out now.”  
“Someone was trying to kill you??”  
“And I survived it without a scar. I can deal with it.”  
“She really can. Valkyrie herself isn’t easy to kill, but together we’re invincible.” Skulduggery threw in, gently putting a hand on her back as if he tried to physically support her as well.  
“Her name is Stephanie in this house”  
“Right, beg your pardon”  
Melissa nodded slowly. “You… you know what you’re doing. Alright. Just don’t get killed or… badly harmed in the process, okay?”  
“I promise, I have no intention of dying in the next years.”  
“Good. That’s… good. Well, I should probably get Alice to bed before she does fall asleep here”  
She picked up Alice who was already too tired to say goodbye and vanished upstairs.  
“She is trying her best to come along, don’t take offence”, Desmond said calmly. “She always tries to have everything under control. But if anyone is suited for that kind of life, it’s you. Isn’t that so, Skulduggery?”  
“I couldn’t agree more. She is a legend already”  
“Of course she is. She is my daughter after all. I just want you to know, I am proud of you and so is your mum, she is just… worried”  
“That’s nice to hear, dad. Well, anyway, maybe it is better if we leave too though…”  
“Sure. I mean, you are more then welcome to stay though”  
“I know. I am just going to check on mom, I’ll be right back”  
She quickly ran upstairs to find her mother wishing a tear from her cheek, leaning against Alice’s door.  
“Don’t cry!” Valkyrie said immediately and hugged her.  
“I’m sorry, it’s just… I want to be more involved in your life, sweetie, but I feel like the details would eventually kill me”  
“I’ll tell you everything you need to know, I promise!”  
“Can I ask you about one thing then?”  
“Eh, sure”  
“What is going on between Skulduggery and you?”  
Valkyrie blinked a few times. “Sorry?”  
“Do you have any other friends beside him?”  
“Yes, naturally”  
“And do you treat them the same way?”  
“Well… Not exactly the same way, but I mean Skulduggery and I have been the closest forever now”  
“Exactly my point. See, I always wanted you to have a good life. A nice job, a nice man by your side, a good family… Never had I a living skeleton in the equation”  
“Mum-“  
“Just let me finish, dear. What I am trying to say is, I get you two are more than friends or colleagues. The way you interact with each other, it’s like… like you do nothing but being together, you know? As if you were only whole together”  
Valkyrie smiled softly. “That is what makes us a great team.”  
“Stephanie, are you and he… dating? Because if you were, then… I’d come around with it. It’s not what I’ve always imagined, but… I’d get it. Except that he is a skeleton and I always wanted grandchildren before I die… But there’s nothing magic can’t do, right?”  
“Magic is a complex thing indeed”  
“So you are dating?”  
“No, we … we are just us, you know?”  
“But do you love him?”  
“Of course I do”  
“Do you love him more than just as a friend?”  
“I… I don’t know, okay? Maybe. I don’t know what’s going to happen. I just… I know I am happy with him around. I know I’d give my life to save him and he’d give his. I know I can trust him blindly and I know that I want to stay with him until the end”  
Melissa smiled at her, then kissed her forehead. “Then go get him”  
“What?”  
“I am not blind, Stephanie. And watching you two today, remembering how you always behave around each other… I don’t think I have ever seen a stranger pair, but I certainly have never seen two people who were more destined for each other.”  
Valkyrie felt her eyes getting watery and her heart beat. So other people did notice what she did. It was obvious for them as well that they were soulmates.  
“Thanks, mum. Thanks for everything”  
She hurried up saying goodbye and found herself in the car with Skulduggery quickly after.  
“Did you end up having a good day?”, she asked softly.  
“Indeed I did. And you?”  
“I did, I think. Mostly thanks to you because you cheered me up”  
“Ah, always a pleasure, my dear” Her heart skipped a beat hearing it. She never liked being called sweetheart or dear before, but when Skulduggery said it she just knew it wasn’t meant in a belittling, but loving way.  
He stopped before her house, yet she hesitated before getting out.  
“Skulduggery, you know that I love you, don’t you?”  
He looked at her, smiling with the façade. “You may have mentioned it before, yes”  
“Good… then this shouldn’t be a surprise” She grabbed his tie and pulled him close, then leaned in to kiss him. His lips were soft on hers. For a few seconds she thought he disliked it, but then she could feel him gently kissing back. Her heart almost exploded with joy as she could feel his arms around her waist and just vanished inside the kiss, losing track of time altogether. Was it merely minutes, or even an hour before they parted? She didn’t know, nor did she care. She looked at his façade and saw him looking down, blushing. He quickly tapped the sigils for his face to melt away.  
“Aw, but your reaction was so cute!”  
“Valkyrie… Not that I am surprised that you fell for my charm, but I am a skeleton”  
“Thanks for telling me, I tend to forget”  
“And you don’t mind?”  
She didn’t respond for a moment, then leaned in again and kissed him right on his teeth. It wasn’t even as weird as she feared it would be, on the contrary -- lips or no lips, he was the same person after all.  
The same person who would have sacrificed his life to watch her as Darquesse in that cage Aggredion was held in. The same guy who never gave up on her and finally parted her from Darquesse. Her mentor, her best friend, her partner in crime. What difference would some skin make?  
She parted from him, looking into his eye pits, smiling.  
“Just so we are clear” Valkyrie said finally before exiting the Bentley and walking up the way to her house. Skulduggery looked after her, finding himself admiring her muscular, beautiful body before she disappeared. Then he drove off into the night, processing what just happened.  
Valkyrie was really his. And he would never let her go again unless she asked him to.


End file.
